Guest moldymac Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Hi all, a new member here with a new Reatta. I picked up a 1988 black over tan from NJ for $700 the other day with just under 100k on it. I have not seen the car myself yet, I have a friend that lives a town over from the seller and he looked at and picked it up for me. Really excited to get my new toy! It does have a few issues that I will have to address before I drive it back though. This is one of those care I forgot existed until someone posted a steering wheel from one for sale on one of my other car forums I'm on. I had always like the interior of the 86 Riviera I bought for parts years back, but not so much the riviera for whatever reason. This one is a nice middle ground of ahead of its time tech and a unique design by GM.The harmonic balancer is clanging, the car stalls at idle, and the brakes don't work. My friend said the rear brake line is blown out and can hear the pump run. The seller had replaced the brakes and rotors recently to try to fix this, I'm guessing the line blowing is just a coincidence as he seemed knowledgeable about cars. I know a little about the Teves brake system, my 89 Lesabre T-type has one in it that works properly. The electronics seem to work except for an error on the CRT about loosing communication with the engine or something to that effect :confused:All of these are not big issues to me, I own a lot of GM cars and several 3.8s, so I know what I'm getting into. I really like the style and love the touch screen setup.For those interested, here is my fleet (some on the road, some in storage)3.8l cars:1987 Lesabre sedan1989 Lesabre T-type1997 Riviera SCV8 cars:1994 Caprice sedan1996 Cadillac fleetwood broughm1994 Roadmaster wagon1995 Caprice wagon1995 Buick Roadmaster wagon2 other parts wagons. Can you tell I'm big into these things?Enough talk, here's a few pics my friend sent me of the car. Hope to get down there in a couple weeks and actually see it in person . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Early black and tan with 16 ways. Could that be an SS ? Barney should have the VINs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 I may need some parts off some of your parts wagons. I've got a '94 Roadster wagon (great towing vehicle), and it needs a couple small things. Do etiehr of your parts wagons have blue interiors? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moldymac Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Early black and tan with 16 ways. Could that be an SS ? Barney should have the VINs.That would be cool, how do I go about finding out?I may need some parts off some of your parts wagons. I've got a '94 Roadster wagon (great towing vehicle), and it needs a couple small things. Do etiehr of your parts wagons have blue interiors?What kind of parts do you need? I don't have any RMWs with blue, but the Caprice does and a few plastic parts will interchange. And yes, these are great towing vehicles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wws944 Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 That would be cool, how do I go about finding out?You (or your friend) would need to look at the options label in the trunk. It is in the spare tire well. Look for option X22. Other than a special hood emblem, the Select Sixty was the same as any other 1988 Reatta. Still, it would be neat if it were one.And welcome to the forum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Your black car looks pretty good and the little things that it needs from the picture are fixable. With just over 100K it should give you good service.Go to Reatta Data Page and wwwreattaowner.com and read about the brakes and do the test.If you vin number falls between 901060 and 901120 it is probably one of the 1988 cars that was made for the Select Sixty dealers. In the trunk, on the right side of the spare tire is the service parts label, raise the insulation and take a photo of the label. We are looking for "X22" code. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 ps unlug the Teves (brake unit) pump or switch until you get the leaks fixed. This will keep it from running constantly when the key is on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 For your "communication error" make sure the cover that goes on the ALDL connector is in place.The ALDL connector is near the parking brake lever and it should have either a brown or gray cover on it. It might be just hanging there. Inside the cover is some shorting pins that help keep the bus alive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Also the 88 ALDL cover is different from later ones - has two jumpers instead of one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kingsley Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Welcome to the Forum! Your Reatta has great potential and you are way ahead of the game with your car knowledge. You are going to have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Also the 88 ALDL cover is different from later ones - has two jumpers instead of one.I'll have to remember that. I find out something new almost every day that is different on the '88 models versus the '89 models. I use to think the '89 was pretty much the same but as I researched the parts I was adding to The Reatta Store on my website, I found there are a lot of differences in the mechanical parts and the electrical system. I no longer think of the '88 and '89 models as being basically the same cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moldymac Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Thanks for the info guys, would never have guessed the cover was necessary for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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